Category: On Board Experiences

Having covered the level of service and culinary delights you can expect onboard your next luxury yacht charter in Chartering 101, part 1, it is only appropriate to follow this with the reasons why Yachts, are the only way, one should vacation.

Endless Experiences:

While on board, your crew will create fun experiences throughout your charter. Think lobster bakes or barbeque lunches on a private island, transforming the seashore into your personal dining room. Themed evenings with the crew, are a fun way to incorporate some silliness into the trip, maybe a disco night? If there are kids on board, there is nothing like an authentic scavenger hunt, island side where they discover actual treasure. Your crew will incorporate “your kind of fun” into your charter.

One of the best things about being part of a Yacht Crew, is that your weekends off usually have you docked off the coast of some island, and when you are seeking adventure, there is no shortage of people to help you find it. I recall one such weekend, back in 2008, docked off St. Maarten, making the island of Saba the perfect quick jaunt for a getaway.

Cruising into calm weather and with our final destination being Monaco, the yacht had to make a quick detour, to the Isle of Man.

Located in the Irish Sea between England and Ireland, the Isle of Man is a self-governing British Crown dependency. A rare destination for superyachts but they were happy to welcome us.

Paperwork was the purpose of our trip to the Island and with that commenced, the majority of the crew took the opportunity to explore. The feeling of stepping on land for the first time in three weeks, is surprisingly amusing, and we were all a little gitty, as we strolled the cobblestone streets in search of a proper British breakfast. We located the most perfect English café, and all dined on hot tea and bacon butties. For those who may not know, a bacon butty is a warm soft white roll, filled with butter, thick Danish bacon and usually tomato ketchup. It is delicious!

Today I wanted to share a story of unexpected adventure during one Atlantic Crossing, in which, we explored a touch more of the Atlantic Ocean than originally planned. We were told by weather routers, that we would need to make a stop over in the Azores. Weather routers are professional weather forecasters who prepare route recommendations based on the forecast. Needless to say they are invaluable on the high seas, and while we were not looking forward to finding a rare safe haven along the Archipelago to anchor, we heeded their warning.

Yachting certainly elicits images of romance on the open sea, ports in exotic locales, champagne breakfasts and five-star dining. One does not necessarily think chicken fingers or little feet running around the deck. If planned correctly though, Yachting can be a family affair, and whether your children are young or teens, if you work with a broker that understands the necessity of having the perfect mix of boat, crew and locale, it will deliver a vacation that blows Disney World, quite literally, out of the water.

There are many Yachts now that are “Pro-Family” and have made design choices or adjustments to the ship and to the crew to make your Charter a spectacular vacation that is not all about the kids or all about the adults, but a true family experience. Chartering a Yacht has the ability to offer endless adventure and experiences to everyone on board. Did I mention this does not include having to check in and out of numerous hotels?

This month’s charter destination, may be the untold story in yachting, or at the very least, a story, many are trying to keep to themselves. The most northeastern state in the US, Maine has been drawing visitors for centuries, but the only way to visit Maine is to set sail on the 3,400 miles of rugged coastline. Maine’s coast creates a perfect navigational maze not accessible via any coastline highway, in fact, none exist in Maine. To truly explore this unique destination, one must raise their sails.

Depending on when you cruise, the weather and conditions in Maine are the perfect complement to Maine’s backdrop. Late summer provides warm days that give way to cool evenings. The minimal but present fog, provides a cloak, that lifts itself, unveiling the next island or cove to explore. The rugged coastline is almost always in view, and watching a day come to a close wrapped in a cashmere throw on deck, with a lighthouse that is still shining on the end of the island, is almost a call to Maine.

Since I have traded my deck shoes for flats and the sea for an office, one of my favorite things to do is scroll through pictures of my adventures at sea and recollect on the inspiring sights, places, people and experiences. I thought it might be fun to start a blog series, which is basically me sharing my Adventures Onboard with you.

I have crossed oceans countless of times, literally I cannot recollect just how many times I made the trip across the pond between Florida and the Mediterranean or crossed the Pacific. Setting sail in San Diego or from the Galapagos, crossing the Ocean always brings adventure. The seas can become rough and swells can soar, storms move through, sun rises and sun sets look different mid ocean. We would perform ceremonies as we passed over the equator and maybe just a few times some not advised mid ocean swimming.